that security, error upon error, i think this precludes her and should preclude her from being in a position where she can make she's judgment calls. >> i've interviewed you on many occasions. i think you will acknowledge this can't can compare to the intelligence blunder which i think you agree with, the intelligence blunder that led the u.s. to go to war in iraq resulting in nearly 4400 troops killed, thousands injured, maimed. and that was no weapons of mass destruction, no connection with al qaeda. you can't compare these, can you? >> i agree with you. you can't compare the beginning of war in iraq and afghanistan, the tragedy of those wars is of a different scale and i guess we're talking more about a diplomatic mission than we are talking about the beginning of the war. >> because i remember during those years, did you call on the president, president bush or secretary defense cheney or

others to give up their duties to be relieved of their duties because of that blunder? >> yeah, i was always opposed to the war in iraq and have spoken out against the war in iraq and against the intelligent failures. i think i've been somewhat equally critical of both parties on these things but i really do think that we have missed the boat on benghazi because we've been talking about whether or not it had something to do with a film afterwards. my complaint has always been in the year in advance of these attacks, why wasn't there significant security provided and why were the requests repeated requests for more security turned down? and i think those were serious judgment errors on secretary clinton on her part and i think she really has to accept spoon built and i'm glad she has. >> she had a very tough exchange with your colleague from wisconsin, senator johnson. i'm going to play her reaction to what he was asking her about what was going on.

listen to this. >> with all due respect, the fact is, we had four dead americans. was it because of a protest or was it because of guys out for a walk one night who decided they would go kill americans. what difference, at this point, does it make? it is our job to figure out what happened and do everything we can to prevent it from ever happening again, senator. >> she was pretty angry. she was pretty passionate in responding to this senator. what is your reaction when you heard her and you were sitting there during that exchange. what went through your mind? >> i think she has a little bit of a valid point. it's not so important whether or not it was a movie or what it was. i think what's important, though, in going forward is it not happen again and i think the review board still doesn't get it. i think that we need to have a military commander. we need a department of defense in charge of security for embassies in a war zone and nobody has recommended that and i think that's where the ultimate failure is.

she has a point about the movie and all of that. i think it doesn't matter so much but what we do forward on security for libya or other war-attorney countries, i don't think we can treat it like an embassy in paris. >> are you ready to appropriate more funds for diplomatic security? >> yeah. and in fact, in my budget i do propose more funds, $55 billion increase in the baseline for the military included in among that is more money for marines regarding embassy security and i would expand their role for not just protecting documents. i would expand their role to actually protect embassy staff and the ambassador. >> senator paul, thanks very much for coming in. >> thank you. all right. we've got some breaking news coming in on beyonce and the lip

sync scandal. jim acosta, what are you learning? >> inaugural official told me a short time ago that pop star beyonce lip sync saying, quote, she did not sing live. a prerecording of the artist's rendition was played instead. what was heard by spectators and viewers was the sound of that recording, according to this official. that official also told me beyonce made this decision personally herself the night before inauguration day saying she arrived so late sunday night she did not have time to rehearse with the u.s. marine band was asked to accompany. the official was puzzled by the decision knowing that she was spot on, something that they say they all heard at that time but my source also tells many he that taped performance should take nothing away from her skills as a live artist. she is, quote, a very good live singer.

but, wolf, just some new information that we have at least one official with the inauguration who would be in a position to know saying she in fact lip synced. >> any reaction? >> no word or members from congress and you heard from the white house, they did not have much to say about this. i got a very short response from a spokesperson for the joint congressional committee overseeing the inaugural committee and said please direct all inquiries to beyonce's representatives. >> they are still mum? >> yes. >> she does have a beautiful voice. >> she does. >> and this was her voice and her own recording. >> that's right. i talked to an owner of an audio company and you'll hear from him in the next hour on the show and he said that whether she was live or whether she was on tape,

it was her voice. and, you know, it's going to be interesting to hear what he has to say. he would not go as far as this official did and confirm that she was in fact lip syncing but the other two big performers, kel kel kelly clarkson and james taylor were live. >> jim acosta, thank you. appreciate it. the stars party teaed late into the night with the president and first lady. an exclusive after hours white house party. i won't want to miss what went on behind closed doors.

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hillary clinton is currently ending her job as secretary of state but we're probably not going to see the last of her by any means. randi kaye is joining us. tell our viewers what's going on. >> there was quite a bit of drama playing out on capitol hill. you saw hillary clinton close to tears. other times she looked pretty enraged. drama and controversy is certainly nothing new for her. she has seen it all. this is not the first time hillary clinton seemed to say good-bye. >> i am determined to leave the state department and our country safer, stronger, and more secure. she launched herself back in the days of the nerdy circular glasses as the woman who could take tradition and crack it like a nut. she and bill clinton met and fell in love at yale. then, in 1974, she moved to arkansas to teach, making partner at the rose law firm five years later.

she kept working after her husband was elected governor of arkansas. she would become the first first lady to do so. >> i suppose i could have stayed home and bake kd cookies. >> then came washington. >> this social security card will represent a right of every citizen and it will give each of us the security of knowing we will be taken care of when we need help. >> her health care initiative came crashing down in 1994. her high visibility came at a cost. but the superwoman learned to steel herself. there was the unexplained suicide vince foster and questions about the clinton's whitewater land deal but the challenges didn't end there. >> i did not have sexual relations with that woman, miss lewinsky. >> the affair and the house vote after that to impeach her husband threatened to derail

team clinton but hillary was nothing if not resilient. she ran for congress and elected sin for from new york with 56% of the note. she became the first first lady to enter congress and in 2007 another first. >> when people tell me, well, you know, i don't think a woman can be elected president, i said, well, i don't believe that but we're going to find out. >> she became hillary like shakira or cher. it was a hard-fought campaign against barack obama but hillary never backed down. >> shame on you barack obama. >> even when campaigning got ugly. not long after that, clinton welled autopsy the the new hampshire diner and ran away from the primary, another victory. but in the end, she conceded, wrapping up her historic presidential bid. >> although we weren't able to shatter that highest, hardest glass ceiling this time -- >> but her persistence and passion convinced the man she tried to beat to cast her on the

world stage. >> you will have a secretary of state who has my full confidence. >> the former first lady and senator from new york would become madam secretary in 2009. yet now a million air miles and 100 countries later, she finds herself entangled in one final controversy. >> i'm in charge of the state department, 60,000 people all over the world, 275 posts. >> testifying about who knew what when but if history is any guide, hillary clinton may emerge unscathed once again and reinvent herself. >> and hillary's close friends say when it comes to her future, she isn't rushing to make any decisions, wolf. she is not going to do this on anyone else's timetable. >> she did not back down after

5 1/2 hours. thank you very much, randi, for that report. up next, you won't want to miss the exclusive white house afterparty. it's lots of things. all waking up. connecting to the global phenomenon we call the internet of everything. ♪ it's going to be amazing. and exciting. and maybe, most remarkably, not that far away. we're going to wake the world up. and watch, with eyes wide, as it gets to work. cisco. tomorrow starts here.

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lady partied late into the night with huge stars like usher and katy perry after the inauguration. and then last night with the likes of lady gaga and tony bennett. brianna keilar is bringing us details on all of the partying that's been going on. brianna, what are you learning? >> reporter: wolf, last night was a huge celebration to thank thousands of staffers and volunteers at the washington convention center. but to hear guests tell it, monday night was really the party to end all parties. the president reportedly led in the early morning hours as he celebrated with close friends, advisers, and celebrities galore. it was the inauguration party to go to, an exclusive after-hours affair at the white house where the president had a dance off with usher to the song gangnam

style. ♪ it all happened behind closed doors but famous revelers tweeted this out, blanketed social media with pictures. alicia keys' husband tweeted this photo of him hugging the president who had taken off his tie. tweeting getting down on the dance floor with the coolest crowd of people ever, which including the first lady herself ♪ still wearing her red jason wu gown as she boogied to "single ladies" and kelly clarkson tweeted, i kid you not, michelle obama stood up and got the party started. katy perry stood up with her beau john mayer and menet.

you may recognize where this party took place. >> as president and commander in chief -- >> reporter: it's where president obama recently announced new cabinet picks and held his last press conference, pushing back on criticism that he doesn't socialize enough with republicans. >> i like a good party. >> reporter: turns out, the president likes two good parties. tuesday, the obamas appeared before 10,000 staffers and volunteers at the staff ball where lady gaga and tony bennett were the featured performers. gaga thanked the president for supporting gay rights. ♪ dedicating a performance of "born this way" to obama captured on a cell phone by a partygoer. a finite but monday's bash set the bar. ashley judd who tweeted this picture of an off-duty secret

service officer who gave her a ride called it an amazing joyful house party. at 3:00 in the morning, katy perry just left the white house proclaiming all other parties from here on out will be judged unless they take place at the white house. india benet tweeted that she saw bill clinton at the party, there without his wife, no surprise since she had a very big week this week, but we're told that he hob nobodied until about 2:00 a.m. >> sounds like a great, great party. they served a lot of fun after everything they've done, certainly on that note. thanks very much for sharing all of that information with us, brianna, keilar. the family of the football star junior o star junior seau takes dramatic action against the nfl in the wake of his suicide. we have new details coming into "the situation room."

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we're getting word of a lawsuit with major implications for professional football. cnn's casey wian is joining us from los angeles with details. casey, tell us about this lawsuit. >> well, wolf, junior seau, the

former nfl middle linebacker, his family, including his four children, his ex-wife and the trustee of his estate are suing the national football league for wrongful death, fraud, and negligence. they're saying the league failed to protect him from repeated blows to the head that ultimately led him to commit suicide in may of last year. the seau family is also suing riddell, which manufacturers helmets for the nfl. the lawsuit claims that the league was, quote, aware of the risks that were associated with repetitive traumatic brain injuries for many decades, but deliberately ignored and actively concealed the information from the players, including the late junior seau. the suit also claims that the nfl promotes violence and brutality to sustain its $9 billion a year business. now, the league has declined comment on the suit. riddell says it's confident in the integrity of its products and its ability to defend them from lawsuits. now, seau's family said in a statement, quote, we know this

lawsuit will not bring back junior, but it will send a message that the nfl needs to care for its former players, acknowledge the decades of deception on the issue of head injuries and player safety, and make the game safer for future generations. now, seau, of course, had a hall of fame caliber career, lasting an incredible 20 years. his suicide last year at age 43 came after his family says his behavior had changed dramatically, including compulsive gambling, alcohol abuse, and violent off the field incide incidents, which their lawsuit links to years of blows of the head. and just recently, the national institute of health, which studied seau's brain, shows that he showed signs of degenerative brain disease, wolf. >> what a sad story that is and what a great football player he was. thanks for that information, casey wian. serena williams smashes her racket on the tennis court. you'll see the fiery moment and what caused it. that's next.

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and less saturated fat? it's eb. eggland's best. better eggs. it's eb. we're following an important story on capitol hill today. lisa sylvester is monitoring today's house vote, putting off the deadline for a huge financial fight. lisa, what do you have? >> wolf, in the fight over raising the u.s. debt ceiling,

the house effectively kicked the can down the road until may. lawmakers voted to let the treasury department keep borrowing money so the u.s. can pay its bills until then. the bill also withholds lawmakers' pay until may if they don't start a budget. most called that a stunt and voted no. and u.s. cargo jets have flown at least five missions in mali this week. a spokesman tells cnn that the c-17 cargo jets have flown in both french troops and tons of supplies for the fight against islamic insurgents. the u.n. is warning the violence could soon displace up to 700,000 people in mali. bill clinton is heading back out on the campaign trail. cnn has confirmed that the former president will headline a march fund-raiser for arkansas senator mark pryor, who's up for re-election next year. clinton, of course, is an arkansas native, who served 12 years as the governor of that state. and finally, a rough day for serena williams at the australian open. the 15-time grand slam winner

broke, wow, you see it there, broke a racket in disgust after blowing a one-set lead in today's quarter finals, and things got worse. the 39-year-old williams lost to 19-year-old sloan stevens, who is moving on to her first ever grand slam semi-final. and boy, oh, boy, serena, se shernl did not look happy there, wolf. >> she was not a happy tennis player at all. lisa, thank you. happening now, we saw her anger and we saw her close to tears, but did hillary clinton's benghazi testimony change anything? i'll ask the brother of one of the americans killed in the attack if he's gotten the answers he needs and wants. plus, bone-chilling cold across much of the country. how long will it last? and an inaugural official tells cnn whether beyonce did or did not lip sync the national anthem. and heisman trophy runner-up manti te'o explains why he lied about a phony girlfriend he'd never met.

i'm wolf blitzer. you're in "the situation room." hillary clinton faced her republican critics today and made it clear she takes the death of u.s. diplomats on her watch very personally. the secretary of state spent hours and hours answering tough questions about the terrorist attack in benghazi, libya. the second round of testimony ended just a little while ago. now some lawmakers who have been demanding the hearings say they still are not satisfied. our new chief washington correspondent, jake tapper, has done some important groundbreaking reporting on what's going on. it was tough at times. it was brutal at times. she answered the questions. >> that's right. secretary clinton said the state department had significantly improved security for diplomats after the benghazi attack, but

the many questions that remain unanswered are likely to haunt the families of the victims and keep this issue for alive for republicans. >> reporter: more than four months after the deadly attack in libya, secretary of state hillary clinton today finally faced congress. >> i take responsibility. >> reporter: in her first hearing since being sidelined by sickness, a concussion, and a blood clot, clinton pushed back on the assertion that initially the obama administration deliberately misled the public. >> and we were misled, that there was supposedly protests, and then something sprang out of that, an assault sprang out of that. >> with all due respect, the fact is we had four dead americans. was it because of a protest or was it because of guys out for a walk one night that decided they'd go kill some americans. what difference, at this point, does it make?! it is our job to figure out what happened and do everything we can to prevent it from ever happening again, senator. >> reporter: it makes quite a bit of difference, of course, in the context of the global terrorist threat throughout northern africa, including, now, mali and algeria. >> there's no doubt that the

algerian terrorists had weapons from libya. >> reporter: it also makes a difference to those republicans convinced that the administration was misleading. >> i categorically reject your answer to senator johnson. to say that it's because an investigation was going on. the american people deserve to know answers. and they certainly don't deserve false answers. >> we just have a disagreement. >> reporter: clinton may run for president in 2016. and today she faced two members of the committee with similar ambitions. republican senators marco rubio of florida and a very aggressive rand paul of kentucky. >> had i been president at the time and i found that you did not read the cables from benghazi, you did not read the cables from ambassador stevens, i would have releifed you of your post. i think it's inexcusable. >> reporter: but today also brought moments of sorrow. just days from her retirement, secretary clinton twice choked up, discussing the four americans killed that night. ambassador chris stevens, sean smith, tyrone woods, and glenn

dougherty. >> i stood next to president obama has the marines carried those flag-draped caskets off the plane at andrews. i put my arms around the mothers and fathers, the sisters and brothers, the sons and daughters and the wives left alone to raise their children. >> reporter: later this afternoon, in testimony before the house foreign affairs committee, clinton was more subdued and mostly welcomed by republicans. >> i wish you the best in your future endeavors, mostly. >> reporter: though there were moments of sparring. >> madame secretary, you let the consulate become a death trap. and that's national security malpractice. >> i could have joined 18 of the other arbs, under both democratic and republican administrations, kept it classified, and then, you know, just said good-bye. that's not who i am, that's not what i do. >> reporter: clinton's larger point, that benghazi did not occur in a vacuum, and is

emblematic of the larger challenge for the united states in northern africa. >> we are in for a struggle, but it is a necessary struggle. we cannot permit northern mali to become a safe haven. >> reporter: clinton made clear her view, that despite the high risks, the u.s. cannot retreat in the muslim world, which the late chris stevens new better than anyone, wolf. >> but it's over for the secretary of state now. she did her 5 1/2 hours of q&a with members of the senate, members of the house. now she moves on. john kerry's getting ready to start his own confirmation hearings. >> though, wolf, there was a big 2016 subtext to all of this. if secretary clinton ultimately runs for president, this is not the last we have heard of this, not the last we've heard of that bite, that we ran at the beginning of the piece. and of course, two members of the senate who might run for president as well were asking her questions. rand paul, very aggressive, and pla marco rubio, who was a little bit more subdued. >> less aggressive, marco rubio, than rand paul. so what you're saying is, potentially, if she decides to

run for president in 2016, and a lot of us think there's a good chance she will, what she said today on benghazi, the whole record since september 11th of last year, that could come back to, what, play a role in a campaign? >> i would be surprised, if she runs, for that quote, where she says, what difference does it make, i would be surprised if that did not end up in a campaign commercial. a lot of republicans already making hay out of it online and in press releases. >> so it's not going away, by any means. >> absolutely not. >> jake, thanks very much. there may be a chilling connection between the benghazi attack and the hostage siege in algeria that recently ended. there are now new unconfirmed reports that several egyptian militants, egyptian militants, were involved in both attacks. tom foreman is taking a closer look at the security threat in north africa. lay it out for us, tom. >> wolf, what security analysts are doing right now is essentially conducting a giant game of connect the dots, particularly looking at the area from egypt to libya to algeria and down to mali, down here. and looking at some events that

have happened to say, is there something that ties them all together? it starts back here on june 27th of last year, when islamists seized control of northern mally. the islamists who took control here in this country, which is 95% muslim, are people who very much oppose the arab spring. they did not like what they saw in many places, in large part because many of them believe that democracy is fundamentally anti-islamic, because they want sharia law, democracy doesn't necessarily support that. let's go to september 11th. that's when the attack came on benghazi. and when the attack on benghazi came, there was a different response from the folks in this area down here. what they saw at that time was that there was an attack waged in libya, and at first, we thought it had to do with people based in libya, but where did that attack come from? this latest news, as you mentioned, wolf, relates now to the attack on the 13th, when the militants took hostages in algeria. there seems to be, based on

these unconfirmed reports, a link between the fighters here, and the fighters here, and the weapons used here, and the weapons used here. so what does that mean? well, it's not entirely clear. what's unsure is whether or not that means that there is a firm connection or a loose connection, and security analysts are focusing on just a few groups here, wolf, to see if they're the ones who are making all this work. wolf? >> what do we know, tom, about the people behind these attacks? >> well, we don't know a whole lot. security analysts, of course, do know more. but let's take a look at the possibilities here, as we take a look at the organizations. the security challenges, there's no known command structure between these groups. we don't know the extent of cooperation. and we don't know the reach. how much further could they go, beyond that part of northern africa. but if we look at the groups involved, we have to look at

ansar al sharia. they believe that democracy is un-islamic and they're believed to be connected to aqim, al qaeda in the islamic maghreb. this is not directly connected to al qaeda, although it's not name, this is a different group. they have a very strong presence in mali. they finance their rise, largely by kidnapping westerners and then demanding ran somes. so, again, when you look at all of these groups and look at the terrain there, wolf, what's happening right now, intelligence analysts are looking at these events and the groups and saying, is this happenstance that they all happened? is it happenstance even that the same people might have been involved, or does this represent more cohesion, more organization, and a bigger terror threat? wolf? >> lots of important questions there. tom, thanks very, very much. kate balduan is here, as she is every day, to dig a little bit deeper into the secretary's testimony today. and it went on and on. >> it went on and on, as you

said, some 5 1/2 hours of testimony. i want to listen here first to a little bit more of what secretary clinton said about the terror threat in northern africa. >> benghazi did not happen in a vacuum. the arab revolutions have scrambled power dynamics and shattered security forces across the region. instability in mali has created an expanding safe haven for terrorists, who look to extend their influence and plot further attacks of the kind we saw just last week in algeria. >> let's bring in our national security contributor, fran townsend. she's a member of the cia external advisory board, and in august, fran visited libya, with her employer and met with ambassador chris stevens shortly before the attacks in benghazi. hi, there, fran. >> hi, kate. >> fran, how big of a problem is this? are these kinds of incidents really now what we're seeing as the downside of the arab spring?

>> you know, kate, what interested me most about what secretary clinton was saying in that spot is, that this is not a new problem in north africa. let's start with mali. you know, there was a safe haven along the mali/mauritania border, that was controlled by mokhtar belmokhtar, who we've heard a lot about in recent weeks, going back when i was in the white house, you know, going back almost eight to ten years ago, and we were engaged in a diplomat effort, talking about with the president of algeria back then about the algerians helping us to deal with that safe haven, which we were concerned about. so there has been this period of time throughout the north african maghreb in algeria and mali of this growing islamist presence. security forces melt away, borders become open, weapons become much more easily available. and the arab spring acts as an accelerant to what is already a decade-long simmering problem of

extremism throughout the islamic maghreb. so this is not a new problem, is my point. and i think we shouldn't pretend that this is just a by-product, an awful by-product, of the arab spring. this was a problem that was there long before that, but was accelerated, certainly, as a result of these sort of fledgling new governments. >> why isn't the libyan government, fran, doing more to detain, to arrest these -- especially the suspects involved in the benghazi killing, but these al qaeda operatives, loosely affiliated with the core al qaeda throughout libya? >> you know, wolf, it's not just the libyan government. remember, the tunisians had an individual in custody, secretary clinton was asked about that today. said, we're working with the tunisian government. you know, we didn't have enough evidence yet to charge him. fbi director mueller was in libya last week, talking to the libyans about the ongoing investigation. it's very frustrating to the families and to many who watch this, these investigations, these international ones, are

complicated and they do take time. but believe me, wolf, the bad guys in the region watch this. and the longer it goes without anybody being brought to justice, it's an indication to them that they have freedom of action, if you will, to target western facilities and westerners, and you see things like the attack on the algerian oil facility. >> so, fran, i want to ask you, when you were watching this testimony from secretary clinton, this very lengthy testimony, hitting on so many topics, what was your big impression? what was your big takeaway from what you heard from her today? >> you know, i put myself, kate, in the position of the families who lost, you know, ambassador stevens' family and the other families. and i think, more than anything, i was frustrated. you know, they were asking -- the members of congress were asking secretary clinton about talking points used by susan rice, which was an incredible waste of time. they often didn't seem terribly well prepared, and then when they did ask really good questions, she referred them back to this classified

accountability review board report, which, of course, can't be spoken about in public. so we didn't get a whole lot of answers. and i think, i found it frustrating and imagine, frankly, more importantly, the families found it frustrating, that this was a big show today, but i don't think we learned a whole lot new. >> senator rand paul, we spoke with him in the last hour, a member of the foreign relations committee, he said that he would have fired her, had he been president, because she had not read the cables warning of security problems in benghazi, including an appeal for more security, from the late u.s. ambassador, chris stevens. when you heard that, what did you think? >> you know, it was -- look, wolf, she's the secretary of state, she's logged probably more miles than any prior secretary of state. she has a big staff. what i didn't understand, though, was, we didn't hear anything about, where was the intelligence and research bureau of the state department, who looks at these sorts of issues. where was the diplomatic security and where was the undersecretary for management and the deputy secretary. where were all those people, who were in between the secretary of

state and the sort of line people, who have now been moved out of their positions, and why haven't they been held accou accountab accountable? did they know about this? we really don't understand where inside the bureaucracy of the state department that the buck stopped. and if secretary clinton rightly says she wants to take responsibility, but with responsibility ought to come accountability. and we didn't see much of that today. >> fran townsend, thanks very much. >> thanks, wolf. coming up, we're going to speak live with greg dougherty, the brother of glen dougherty. he died, he was killed in that benghazi attack. we'll get his reaction to what hillary clinton said today in about 15 minutes. still ahead, many americans are chilled to the bone right now. stand by to find out how long the bitter cold temperatures will be lasting. also, the beyonce lip sy syncing debate. oh, what a debate. an inaugural official tells cnn about what he knows and he's very definite about what happened. all waking up.

♪ becoming part of the global phenomenon we call the internet of everything. ♪ trees will talk to networks will talk to scientists about climate change. cars will talk to road sensors will talk to stoplights about traffic efficiency. the ambulance will talk to patient records will talk to doctors about saving lives. it's going to be amazing. and exciting. and maybe, most remarkably, not that far away. the next big thing? we're going to wake the world up. ♪ and watch, with eyes wide, as it gets to work. ♪ cisco. tomorrow starts here.

it's not just the snow, it's the bitterly cold windchill temperatures, some in double digit negatives. and that's impacting a large part of the country right now. in some places, it's the worst we've seen in years. indeed, it's so bad that chicago firefighters struggled putting out a fire because the water instantly froze, leaving a sheet of ice on the side of the building. similar scene in minnesota, where a cnn ireporter had some fun tossing boiling water into the air, and watching it turn into snow. he wasn't alone, by the way. jeanne moos is going to have more on this a little bit later. kate, i've got to tell you, people in my hometown of buffalo, new york, they're used to the snow. i grew up in that kind of weather, but it's getting really, really cold right now. >> something like, what, 9 degrees?

>> maybe even colder. that's like biting cold. that's mean cold. let's find out just how bad it is for some folks and how long it will last. jason carroll is standing by, poor jason carroll is standing by, outside, in new york. but first, let's go to our severe weather expert, chad myers, who's in the warm, warm extreme weather center studio. so, chad, how long is this cold snap expected to last? >> until tuesday. i felt like putting a coat on, though, so that jason and i -- he didn't feel so bad out there. 28 degrees below zero right now, fahrenheit, so that's almost close to celsius, is the windchill in montreal, 2 below in toronto, and it is still blowing out there. you asked when is it going to be over? tuesday. it finally does warm up on tuesday, but it's cold again next sunday. this is a warm/cold, warm/cold kind of pattern. international falls, feels like 30 below, winnipeg, 37 morebelo zero. it's the jet stream, coming down from the north. it will continue this direction, coming down and allowing that

cold air to dump in this direction. the other side of the coin, it's 75 in l.a. this is kind of how it works. this whole pattern is going to shift to the east, so the east is going to warm up, the west will cool down, and then another one will come through, another low pressure will slide on by, and we get cold again. it's just one thing after another, and it's something that my grandmother used to call pneumonia weather. because you don't know whether you should go out there with a shirt on or a coat on and you forget one time, and all of a sudden you get out of your car, because you went to work and it's 60 and get back in your car and it's 30. back to you. >> that sounds bad. chad myers, we'll check back in with you, i'm sure. now let's go to cnn national correspondent jason carroll, who is standing by, unfortunately, outside. so jason, how bad is it? >> reporter: well, yeah, really nice. assign the reporter who's from california to do the weather. really, really nice. in terms of how cold it is, about 4 degrees with the windchill here in new york city. it is very cold. but as cold as it is here, that is nothing in comparison to what folks are dealing with in the

midwest and other parts of the northeast. the northeast sidelined by a siberian express, more than 16 inches of snow in erie, pennsylvania. so much the plows can barely keep pace. >> we keep crews going, 24 hours, just to keep up with the snow, going back to the lots and redoing them over and over again. >> reporter: windchills so extreme, the double-digit temperatures seem more suited for the arctic. mt. washington, new hampshire, negative 85 with windchill. mt. mansfield, vermont, negative 63. ogdenburg, negative 39. canaan, negative 34. and burlington, vermont, negative 28 with windchill. with temperatures this low, throw a cup of hot water in the air in fargo, north dakota -- >> oh, yeah! >> hey! >> reporter: and it appears to instantly turn to snow. the same problem in chicago.

temperatures so cold, firefighters struggled to put out a blaze when water from their hoses turns toize. windchill warnings and advisories now in effect for the northeast, where hypothermia is a concern. in minneapolis, doug o'burns says the cold weather goes with his jobs of maintaining the town's tree lights. >> it's describable, almost, unless you really experience it and feel the wind biting at your skin, it's hard to explain. >> reporter: in new york city, dozens of warming centers opened to help those in need shelter from the cold. but those who have to be out say they're managing the best they can. >> you know, i keep hearing that. keep moving. >> yeah, keep moving. because then, you're not like standing there, if you're cold, all your body heat is leaving, but if you're moving, your body heat staying around you and you stay warm. >> it's cold. you can't feel your fingers at the end of the day.

>> reporter: and you heard from what chad was say welcome the weather not expecting to improve until at least past this weekend. so the city is really encouraging people here and in new york city to take advantage of some of those warming centers that have been set up. back to you. >> all right, jason. thank you. now it's time to go inside. have a good night. we'll talk to you soon. >> have some hot chocolate. >> have some hot chocolate, wolf says. stand by for more on an historic change to the u.s. military. aww man. [ male announcer ] returns are easy with free pickup from the u.s. postal service. we'll even drop off boxes if you need them. visit usps.com pay, print, and have it picked up for free. any time of year. ♪ nice sweater. thank you.

kate's here with more of the day's top stories. what else is going on, kate? >> first, a groundbreaking move by the u.s. military. it is ending its policy of banning women from direct combat. officials confirm that defense secretary leon panetta will make the formal announcement tomorrow. it's expected to open up a number of new jobs for women in the armed forces. and "new york" magazine reports real estate mogul donald trump has been holding meetings about possibly buying "the new york times," although all indications on wall street are investors aren't taking the reports seriously, at least yet. the company, which isn't commenting, has been recently hit with the same financial problems plaguing much of print media right now. trump's office also isn't commenting specifically on the report.

and mitt romney, poor mitt romney's portrait now hanging in an unofficial gallery of presidential campaign losers. it's an unusual museum, you could definitely say, on the upper floor of a bank in kansas. romney is the 60th quote/unquote also rand to make it into the museum, along with the likes of thomas jefferson and andrew jackson who lost at least one presidential election. that's an interesting museum, one you probably don't want to end up in. >> i've never even heard of it before. >> well, now you know. zb >> now i know. we heard secretary of state hillary clinton take responsibility for the deadly attack on u.s. diplomats in benghazi, libya. when we come back, we'll ask the brother of one of the victims for his take on the secretary of state's testimony. whether he blames her, others, for his brother's death. [ male announcer ] don't just reject convention. drown it out. introducing the all-new 2013 lexus ls f sport. an entirely new pursuit.

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astrazeneca may be able to help. happening now, another emotional take on the benghazi attack, after secretary of state, hillary clinton's testimony. we're going to talk to the brother of one of the victims, glen doherty, and ask him who he blames. plus, an inaugural official now speaking out publicly about whether beyonce lip synced or not. and notre dame football star manti te'o explaining why he lied about his fake girlfriend, even after he learned it was all a hoax. i'm wolf blitzer. you're in "the situation room." hillary clinton says it was very, very difficult to call the families of diplomats killed in the u.s. mission in benghazi, libya. >> the secretary of state has wrapped up her long-awaited testimony before congress. at one point, it got very

emotional. >> i stood next to president obama as the marines carried those flag-draped caskets off the plane at andrews. i put my arms around the mothers and fathers, the sisters and brothers, the suns and daughters, and the wives left alone to raise their children. >> four americans were killed in the benghazi attack. u.s. ambassador christopher stevens, information officer, sean smith, and security personnel tyrone woods, and glen doherty. >> and we're joined now by the brother of glen doherty, greg doherty is joining frus california. first of all, greg, thanks for coming in. our deepest, deepest condolences to you and your entire family. >> thank you for that. >> when you heard the secretary of state get emotional, speaking about your brother, the three others, what did you think of her testimony? >> well, in that momt, i was

remembering the really nice ceremony that they had for us on that friday. we got to shake hands with her and the president and a lot of other people, and it was special. it was a really nice thing that they did for us. >> were the officials at the state department keeping you informed of the investigation from day one? >> no. they told us some of the basics early on. they filled us in early the following week on more thorough details. a lot of it was coinciding with what was coming out in the newspapers, is how we were hearing it. we did have some people that were more on the inside, who were able to give us more details. >> so, greg, now after four months, since your brother's tragic death, and it's gotten caught up in, unfortunately, in such a horrible political

controversy, what would you say is the one question or more than one question that you still have, that remains unanswered at this point? >> the political side of things, i guess, the main question that i would have is who did it and what's being done about it and how does this affect the way we're fighting this war on terror. i hear the name ansar al sharia as being the militia most closely associated with these attacks. i haven't heard many individuals' names. i don't know where anybody who did the attacking is. there was one man that was released, after being questioned. i think it was in tunisia. but, where the investigation is going and how we are proceeding, in dealing with also the big

picture of just islamist extremists in the middle east and the african me ghraib, i don't want really understand how this is all working. >> so what would you tell the secretary of state? what would you tell these members of congress? what would you like see being done? >> well, the secretary of state, that role mainly seems to be about diplomacy. and i think the things that have been said about the, you know, inadequate security stance that they had there, they've been said, and the recommendations of the arb board are being enacted, it seems, and those seem reasonable. it did seem clear that the consulate or the special mission, i guess it was, technically, temporary mission, it technically was, it wasn't

adequately protected, but they know that. and they're hopefully funding, protecting other similar high-risk places. the main thing i'm concerned about is just the big picture. how are we fighting this -- there's a lot of people that hate us out there and what are we doing about it and how are we going after the people that are doing wrong against us and how are we keeping more people from being recruited into that whole system. >> greg, had you ever heard from your brother, that he was worried about his security? >> yes. >> what did he say? >> he said that he didn't know -- well, you know, i said, how -- ugh. yeah, i don't know how to answer that question.

he knew it was dangerous, but he was volunteering for it. so, it's just risky. it's a war zone. >> yeah, he's a very -- he was a very, very courageous young man. i'm going to play a little clip, i interviewed senator rand paul of kentucky, a member of the foreign relations committee, earlier. but this is what he said to hillary clinton, during his questioning of her, earlier in the day. >> i'm glad that you're accepting responsibility. i think that, ultimately, with your leaving, you accept the cullabili culpability for the worst tragedy since 9/11. and i really mean that. had i been president at the time and i found that you did not read the cables from benghazi, you did not read the cables from ambassador stevens, i would have relieved you of your post. i think it's inexcusable. >> when you heard that, what was your reaction? did you agree with the senator? >> i did not agree that i would

relieve her of her post. i do agree that they should have had better communication. and not just within the state department, but between the different departments as well. the department of defense, the cia, everyone, it seems like they could be communicating a lot better with each other. >> greg, i'm sure, on some level, everyone who's lost someone in this tragedy is searching for someone to hold accountable. someone to blame. so who do you blame? do you blame the secretary of state? who do you blame? >> i blame ansar al sharia or the terrorists who were pulling the trigger. >> you blame the killers. but in terms of the lax security, is there somebody you're blaming for that? >> i think people are sorting that out. yeah, i think there are people who should be blamed. i'm not really clear, though, on

where that all falls. they should have designated this a permanent consulate, instead of a temporary facility, that would have left some clear standards in place, about the personnel that should have been there and the physical reinforcements they should have had at the place. they should have had more people on board, and i'm not sure where that gets funded from and i'm not sure who approves that funding, but i think it was democrats, republicans, state department, department of defense, they all share responsibility for it. >> well said. greg doherty, once again, our deepest condolences to you, to your entire family. thanks very much for joining us. >> thank you. >> we'll take a quick break. much more news right after. so...how'd it go?

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♪ by the dawn's early light >> an inaugural official telling cnn the pop star beyonce did, in fact, lip sync her performance on inauguration day. >> that's true. cnn national political correspondent jim acosta's has been following this story, the drama continues. what do you have?

>> first, let me tell you about this interview that we conducted earlier today. in an exclusive interview with cnn, the owner of the audio company at monday's inaugural says he knows whether beyonce was live or lip syncing, but he won't say, but we did talk to an inaugural official who did confirm to cnn that the pop star was lip syncing on inauguration day. ♪ oh, say can you see ♪ by the dawn's early light >> reporter: beyonce may still be holding her tongue over whether she was actually singing the national anthem on inauguration day, but bob goldstein, the owner of the company that provided the audio equipment for the ceremony says he knows the truth. goldstein would not go on camera, but fittingly, he spoke to cnn in this audio-only interview. >> what people heard over the system and on air was beyonce singing the, you know, the national anthem, and when she actually sang it is kind of a moot point. it was her. it wasn't done with 15 takes.

it was her, all the way live, at some point in time, and only she can tell you when that was. >> reporter: the day after the inaugural, the u.s. marine band initially said the pop star did not actually sing the star spangled banner and a prerecording was used instead, but then later backed away from that statement. goldstein did allow cnn to get these shots of the audio board that was used for the ceremony. one way to answer this question, once and for all, is to find out which fader the audio technician turned up. was it the one for the prerecording or the one beyonce? officials here say the audio engineer actually running this board works for another company. >> can you give us any clarity on that? >> boy, i'm really sorry, that i can't. i'm really sorry that i can't. i don't believe it's up to us to

have that conversation. i mean, you know, i don't think it's a question that i should answer. >> and is it because you just feel like, you know, this is -- this is something for somebody else to disclose and talk about and not -- >> well, i think it's something that beyonce should disclose. i think it's up to her whether she wants to, you know -- i mean, trust the conversation. >> could he hear her singing into the microphone? >> um, i don't think i'm going to answer that question. ♪ my country, 'tis of three >> reporter: one thing goldstein did say that the day's other two big performers, kelly clarkson and james taylor were, indeed, live. >> um, i can tell you that the other two were absolutely all the way live. >> just can't tell us about beyonce? >> i can't tell you about beyonce, because it's become an issue. >> reporter: but an inaugural

official who asked not to be identified was willing to go further on beyonce's performance, telling cnn the pop star made the decision to use the prerecording the night before the inaugural. that official said, "because she didn't have time to rehearse with the marine band, she decided to use her recording with the marine band. she did not sing live." up on capitol hill, congressional officials overseeing the inaugural are still refusing to answer any questions on what some are now calling beyonce gate. there were no loose lips over at the white house either. >> i'm not sure i understand the variety and contradictory reports on the matter. >> reporter: music industry experts say it's not uncommon for performers to lip sync at big outdoor events. still, beyonce's publicists have yet to return cnn's request for comment. and wolf, it almost is sort of a twist on the old term, it's not the crime, it's the cover-up, in this case, it's not the concert, it's the cover-up, it seems. >> at least it's been resolved. whether she issues a public statement, we now know for sure

what happened. >> we do now know if sure, according to this inaugural official. some of the other officials who are in charge of this, aren't willing to say definitively on camera, but from this one official, yes, she was lip sy syncing. >> it's her voice, she does a beautiful voice -- >> but it was not live. >> she wasn't lip syncing somebody else's rendition of "the spar stang pangled banner. out. all waking up. ♪ becoming part of the global phenomenon we call the internet of everything. ♪ trees will talk to networks will talk to scientists about climate change. cars will talk to road sensors

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two key figures in the alleged girlfriend hoax involving notre dame linebacker, manti te'o are speaking out, including te'o himself. >> brian todd is here. he's been working this story. what's the latest, brian? >> wolf and kate, manti te'o is still firmly denying that he is part of this hoax, but he does admit that he was not forthcoming with the public, even after he got a crucial piece of information. >> reporter: manti te'o says he stuck to the story about a girlfriend he'd never met, briefly telling the media and the public about her, even when he knew something was wrong.

in an interview with abc's katie couric, te'o was asked why. >> this girl, who i committed myself to, died on september 12th. now i get a phone call on december 6th saying that she's alive and that i'm going to be put on national tv two days later and they ask me the same question, you know, what would you do? >> reporter: a source with knowledge of the matter tells cnn, a woman pretending to be te'o's apparent girlfriend, lennay kekua, called him on december 6th, claiming she had faked her death because she was afraid of drug dealers. te'o went to notre dame officials with the story. the school investigated and according to our source, confirmed that two men and a woman were behind the hoax. te'o says he didn't believe that his online girlfriend never existed until deadspin.com first reported it on january 16th. now the woman who says her facebook pictures the woman who facebook pictures were used to depict the fictional girlfriend on twitter has told nbc news she

wasn't part of the hoax. >> past five years, he's literally been stalking my facebook and stealing my photo. >> she said he called her and confessed and apologized. cnn source says notre dame's investigation has confirmed he was one of the people behind it. cnn has tried several times to reach him. he has not responded. his father, a pastor, whose picture is here on facebook, would not go on camera with with us, but did tell us quote, the truth will all come out. god knows our character. te'o has denied being part of the hoax. i asked crisis management expert eric hall about the interview. what would you do? >> how did he come across to you? >> you know, there's a difference between being young and foolish and machiavellian

and scheming. we don't know what the data trail is going to show. that remains to be seen. >> in fact, some key questions remain. did manti te'o and ram know each other before this break? a distant cousin told me the families do know each other, but we haven't gotten any details. the other question, who's the person posing as te'o's girlfriend whom he spoke to many times. >> and there's another woman whose pictures were apparently stolen to create the identity of someone else. >> getting even more bizarre when we thought it couldn't. her name is donna. she was identified in pictures in a twitter account portrayed as the sister of the girlfriend. another fictitious sister of a fictitious girlfriend. she has denied meeting manti te'o and says she was not part of the hoax. her pictures were used in twitter depicting her as the

sister of the girlfriend. >> we need a flowchart. thank you. to another big story. hillary clinton on the hot seat over the benghazi attack. one specific senator riled up the secretary of state earlier today. he's going "outfront" with erin burnett tonight. hi there, erin. >> and yes, senator ron johnson came out today with a tough change with the secretary of state. he left hillary clinton literally pounding her fists on the table. very emotional and she actually began a response with the words, with all due respect. that's one of my favorite phrases. when it's used, it means anything but. but it was a very emotional exchange and we're going to be talking with the senator about what he talked about with the secretary of state and whether this country got the answers it needs on benghazi. back to you. >> what else do you have coming up? >> we're also going to be talking about manti te'o and sort of find out is it possible now that we got this little

trickle of what happened, yes, i lied, but only about this. where there's one lie, is this going to be a whole lot? sort of like cockroaches. there's never just one. we're going talk to dr. drew about that. and women in combat. one man who says with the wars we're going to be fighting, rape is going to be one of the biggest risks americans are going to face. it's one i've been torn on over the years. we're going to talk about that. women in combat and whether women should be on the front lines. >> it's a good conversation to be having. see you soon. we showed you earlier all the cold weather misery, but for some, it seems to be an excuse to have a little fun. jeanne moos takes a look coming up next.

inspire malibu. science and evidence based drug and alcohol treatment center. where your addiction stops and your new life begins. call now. our video of the day is a time lapse, look at this. showing fog rolling across dubai. it's along the persian gulf, which sets up some interesting weather patterns. if you were in a tall enough building, and dubai has plenty, the view was great. that looks like the beginning of a sci-fi movie. no. you going to rub it in my face?

>> those of us on the ground here in the united states are coping with one of the coldest winters in years. some are coping what w what jeanne moos calls stupid weather tricks. >> why just charge through the cold when you can use it to experiment? it used to be civilians. posting their weather tricks online. these days, actual weather men are demonstrating what happens when you throw boiling water in temperatures below zero. >> oh, yeah. >> hey! >> we're calling these stupid weather tricks, the kind we can't resist. >> a beautiful day! >> but anyone who plans to try this one when it's warmer than say 20 or 30 degrees before zero, better bring an umbrella to avoid risking 30 degree burns.

you'll see giant bubbles crystallizing in the cold. what a supersoaker does. but the most popular stupid weather trick seems to be the frozen wet t-shirt. >> it took less than ten minutes for it to completely freeze over here. >> only took six minutes. >> which we can now hold upside down. it took two, three minutes. >> frozen t-shirts leave you cold, how about a frozen bah nan na. a hammer or a frozen egg in minnesota where it was 20 below. of ce,